paladin
by Eassarin
Summary: when a mysterious new sith lord emerges, it is up to a young jedi padawan to save the jedi order. can he do it? story is influenced by reviews, so don't forget to review


Authors notes: ok, guys, this is my first attempt at a starwars fan fiction. i just like the idea of putting a jedi through a crucible as it were. im going to try to make this a long story, but im not entirely sure where its headed, so i made it rated M to be safe. please follow and review this to give me feed back. the reviews you guys make may affect the direction of the story. enjoy!

* * *

chapter one: white knight

i was sitting in a cargo bay on a crate. i was gingerly touching a finger to a nasty gash on my left didn't hurt as much now, but it was still sore and eating was still painful.

"Koren! where have you been!?"

i looked up to see my jedi master walking toward me fast. master Wailen was a tall man, with carmel brown hair that fell just below his shoulders. he often wore a white linen shirt and black linen pants when he wasnt on assighnment, but he always wore his white coat. its almost a trench coat, if trench coats had twenty eight outside puckets and gods only know how many on the inside. the tail end of the coat billowed out behind my jedi master as he stormed toward me. '_im in for it now_' i thought

i just remembered, a little too late to matter, that i was supposed to go to the jedi council with master Wailen half an hour ago to discuss what happened in the battle forEndor, and the new sith lord i fought. i stood and bowed as my master got to me.

"master, i am sorry. i forgot..." i began to explain myself.

"you are not a child anymore, boy. when are you going to grow up? your sixteen now. you should be more responsible." Wailen said back in his calm and measured yet angry voice.

"yes, master, but.." i started again.

"you can start growing up right now. step one: stop giving excuses. we are late enough for our meeting with the jedi council as it is. come allong." with that, he turned and started to walk out of the cargo bay i had been hiding in.

it was a short walk to the jedi tower. before long, we were in the council chamber. i never liked coming before the council. it made me nervous, which master Yoda always seemed to bring up, which only served to make it worse. i stood behind master Wailen as he explained that the battle of Endor was a major victory and the tactical genius that went into the planning and exicution was superbe and blah blah blah blah blah...

"pay attention, you should, young Koren. much to learn, you still have, mmmmM? you turn, it is. to tell us of the sith lord, you must." master yoda said, joltimg me from my inattention. '_damn. its like he knows._' i stepped out from behind master Wailen and bowed to the council.

"well, the battle was rather confuseing. so much going on at once." i said.

a pause...

"you first battle, it was, mmmmM?" master Yoda asked.

"yes, Master. it was." i replied, as i thought back on the battle.

i got to the battle with master Wailen and a battalion of clone troopers to reinforce our garrison on Endor. i got to the base without any trouble, but soon trouble found us. as the door to the fort closed behind us, explosions shook the building. i had my light saber out before master Wailen himself had. my lightsaber was a pure white blade, with a silver handle. inscribed in the pommel ball were the words **peace in it's own time. **the handel itself was long enough for two hands and the blade was four feet long. orders were barked as the clones scrambeled to their battle stations.

"what do we do, Master?" i asked.

"you stay here and guard the door, Koren. i will be in the command room. im going to figure out what is going on. i will be right back.

master Yoda's words pulled me out of the past. "what happend, you must tell."

i took a shakey breath. i didnt want to think of the battle._i have no other choice _i thought to myself.

"everything happened as my master said it did. what do you want me to tell?" i asked, hoping that my jedi master had actually told them the story while i was buissy not paying attention.

"mmmmmm. of what he saw, told us he did. interested in that, i am not. in what you say, interested i am." master Yoda said.

i thought back to the battle, gathered my thoughts, and started the story.

* * *

after Master Wailen had left, i was kept company by only a platoon of twelve clone troopers. the sounds of battle were an eerie sound. explosions and death screams muffeled by a metal wall. the minutes crept by like a turtle through mud.

then, without warning, the door we were supposed to guard was slammed against the opposite wall. where the door should have been was a sith lord. he stood there cool and collected, as if he were here to have dinner with us. he held himself like most sith lords i had seen in the videos Wailen... Master Wailen had shown me. except the black blade of his light saber. he wore a shiney tight sleeveless black leather shirt with an equally shiney pair of tight lether pants. his face was as pale as a bone, and his eyes were blue like saphires. his hair was black with red highlights that fell to just below his ears. he wore a warm, yet cruel smile on his face, and his eyes were lock to mine.

"get out of here, jedi!" the clone lieutenant barked at me as he brought his rifle to his sholder.

i put my hand on top of his riffle and lowered it for him, "go back inside and get more men. soon this room will be theirs. get more men and get back here. you arnt enough. i will handle the sith lord."

he hesitated a moment. "as you with, jedi." he and his men backed ut toward the door.

during it all, the sith lord had not taken his eyes off of mine, nor mine from his. i pulled my light saber from my belt and turned it on. the sith lords smile spread as he saw the white of my saber.

i stood my ground as master Wailen had told me so many times i heared his voice in my head as i focused on the unnamed sith lord. "_a jedi is a defender of peace, not a master of war. defenders de not start a fight. they do what they must to restore peace. if you ever encounter the enemy, or gods forbid it, a sith lord, let them move first._"

"you are brave, kid. i will give you that," the sith lord said in a soft and supriseingly warm voice, "you are a jedi master?" he asked.

"no, but i am a jedi knight. leave this place." i said in what i hoped was a confident voice.

he just chuckeled warmly and turned off his light saber. he sat down on a crate that was next to the hole in the wall that had been the door. "do you fear me, boy?" he asked in the warm, welcoming voice of his.

"fear is useless," i lied, knowing full well he knew i was, "it only slows us down."

"but you do fear me?" he said, more a statement than a question.

i raised my light saber into a more suitable defensive stance and started at him with hard eyes and a face of steel.

he sighed and stood, turning his saber on again. "if this is the way you want it," he said in his kind voice, "i will gladly give you your death."

he lunged at me. i blocked his stab wit ease, having been trained well for it. he then brought his blade back to slash at me from the right, which i blocked. he came down on me with slash after slash, and i blocked them, but could do little more. he was fast, and he was good at what he was doing. suddenly i heared a lightsaber turn on behind me. the sith lord was distracted by it for a mement. i took the opening, and kicked him back. i turned slightly to see Master Wailen standing close behind me and to my right with both of his blue light sabers in hand. the sith smiled his warm smile again.

"ahhhh, Master Wailen, is it?" he said in his kind voice.

"who are you?" my jedi master demanded.

"i am the night walker. i am the day walker. i am the force of man and the force of nature. i am life, and most important, i am your death, Master jedi." he said as if it were a normal thing to say.

"what is your name?" i asked, with the voice of a boy filled with wonder.

"i am Darth Arrian." he responded. for the first time, his voice took a darker tone. he looked to master Wailen. he was not focused on me. here was my chance.

i leapt forward, lunging at him.

"KOREN!" master wailen yelled, a warning i ignored.

i locked sabers with him, broke away, and began to bear down on him while i could. i did not know why, but i knew he had to leave. if i could just force him to run...

suddenly the pommel of his saber cracked into my skull, both jarring me and knocking me back. just then, my master lept into the fight. he was a far better fighter than i was. the fight was fast paced. slash stab, block perry, slash block slash slash, block scisser slash, duck whirl slash. i had a hard time following the fight. they were locked in one spot, both refusing to sacrifice ground to the other. then wailen was forced backward. _the force_ i thought. i lept toward the sith lordand slashed at him. he swung back. i leaned back and ducked under, but he grazed my cheek.

it burned. i stumbled back. the sith lord stepped back. "there is a gift to remember me by. i must go. as fun as it is, i do have more important things to do then kill kids. good bye for now. we will meet again, and when we do, you will get more than a cut." his voice was still light hearted, but the cold undertone was more pronounced. he turned and walked out of the fort.

i turned to master wailen. he was crumpled on the floor by the far wall.


End file.
